Getline() and cin manipulate dynamic array - c++

I'm totally lost and confused and could use some help.
I'm currently working on a small command line-based game. For this I wrote a class Inventory, dynamically creating an array of invSpace-objects, each space representing a pair of a pointer to an Item (another class of mine) and a integer, depicting a quantity. Here's the code:
class invSpace {
public:
Item *item;
int quantity;
invSpace() {
item = NULL;
quantity = 0;
}
};
class Inventory {
private:
invSpace* spaces = NULL;
size_t size;
public:
int free_space() {
int free = 0;
for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) {
if (spaces[i].item == NULL) {
free++;
}
}
return free;
}
Inventory() {}
Inventory(size_t new_size) {
size = new_size;
spaces = new invSpace[size];
for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) { //I know this is obsolete because
spaces[i].item = NULL; //of the invSpace constructor, I
spaces[i].quantity = 0; //just did this for testing
}
~Inventory() {
delete[] spaces;
}
invSpace& operator[](int index) {
return spaces[index];
}
};
There are some more methods in this class, like for adding, deleting and searching for items, but those don't matter now. So this is basically just a simple array within one object, dynamically allocating memory in the constructor and with some extra methods. After being created, the array contains zero elements, or Items, so the free_space() method should return the size of the array. But it doesn't. It returns about half of the size.
My first thought was that something went wrong with the allocation. But at a second glance I noticed that the Inventory is totally fine directly after being created; with exactly as many spaces as requested, all of them set to item=NULL/quantity=0. But after a call of getline() at the start of main() that scans user input and saves it to a string for further analyzing, some spaces get filled with random addresses and integers.
Even stranger, with each new call of getline() some spaces are freed, some others filled. As far as my debugging, experimenting and testing goes, none of these addresses belong to any variable in my program, they are just plain random. Also, at no point is there be any interference with the Inventory and the getline() function or the string it returns. In fact, after being created, no part of this object is used anywhere in the code beside the free_space() method. What's even stranger is that spaces in the Inventory class is marked private, so a method is required to meddle with this pointer/array (or so I would expect).
This problem occurs with getline() and cin but not with any of C's <stdio.h> input stream functions. Using malloc() instead of new[] makes no difference. Of course, I could use something like scanf() for the reading from the console. Still, I just want to know why all these things happen. I have absolutely no idea.
Thanks in advance for every answer!
EDIT:
I narrowed the whole code so that it still produces the same error, also changed free_space() so that it prints adress and integer if present:
#include <iostream>
#include <string>
#include <map>
using namespace std;
class Item {
public:
static map<string, Item*> itemlist;
string name;
string description;
Item() {}
Item(const string new_name, const string new_description) {
name = new_name;
description = new_description;
itemlist.insert(pair<string, Item*> (name, this));
}
};
map<string, Item*> Item::itemlist;
/*The more Items are declared, the more random adresses appear in the
inventory*/
Item item01("sword", "A sharp and deadly weapon.");
Item item02("shield", "This will protect you. To a certain extent.");
Item item03("stick", "What is this for exactly?");
Item item04("bottle of water", "A bottle full of refreshing spring water.");
class invSpace {
public:
Item *item;
int quantity;
invSpace() {
item = NULL;
quantity = 0;
}
};
class Inventory {
private:
invSpace* spaces = NULL;
size_t size;
public:
int free_space() {
int free = 0;
for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) {
if (spaces[i].item == NULL) {
free++;
cout << i << " = free" << endl;
}
else {
cout << spaces[i].item << " / " << spaces[i].quantity << endl;
}
}
return free;
}
Inventory() {}
Inventory(size_t new_size) {
size = new_size;
spaces = new invSpace[size];
for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) {
spaces[i].item = NULL;
spaces[i].quantity = 0;
}
}
~Inventory() {
delete[] spaces;
}
};
class Player {
public:
string name;
Inventory inventory;
Player(const string new_name) {
inventory = Inventory(40);
name = new_name;
}
};
Player player("Me");
int main() {
string input;
//Inventory inventory(40); //no error when declared outside the Player class
while (1) {
cout << "\n>> ";
getline(cin, input);
if (input == "x") {
break;
}
else {
player.inventory.free_space();
}
}
}
Some things I noticed: No error occurs if the inventory isn't part of a Player-object. If it is but no Items are declared only the first inventory space receives a random adress (and int value) after the first call of getline().
The more Items there are, the more random adresses I get, it seems...

Related

How to pass array of object pointers to function?

I am having trouble passing an array of object pointers from main() to a function from different class.
I created an array of object pointers listPin main() and I want to modify the array with a function editProduct in class Manager such as adding new or edit object.
Furthermore, I want to pass the whole listP array instead of listP[index]. How to achieve this or is there any better way? Sorry, I am very new to c++.
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
class Product
{
protected:
string id, name;
float price;
public:
Product()
{
id = "";
name = "";
price = 0;
}
Product(string _id, string _name, float _price)
{
id = _id;
name = _name;
price = _price;
}
};
class Manager
{
protected:
string id, pass;
public:
Manager(string _id, string _pass)
{
id = _id;
pass = _pass;
}
string getId() const { return id; }
string getPass() const { return pass; }
void editProduct(/*array of listP*/ )
{
//i can edit array of listP here without copying
}
};
int main()
{
int numProduct = 5;
int numManager = 2;
Product* listP[numProduct];
Manager* listM[numManager] = { new Manager("1","alex"), new Manager("2", "Felix") };
bool exist = false;
int index = 0;
for (int i = 0; i < numProduct; i++) { //initialize to default value
listP[i] = new Product();
}
string ID, PASS;
cin >> ID;
cin >> PASS;
for (int i = 0; i < numManager; i++)
{
if (listM[i]->getId() == ID && listM[i]->getPass() == PASS) {
exist = true;
index = i;
}
}
if (exist == true)
listM[index]->editProduct(/*array of listP */);
return 0;
}
Since the listP is a pointer to an array of Product, you have the following two option to pass it to the function.
The editProduct can be changed to accept the pointer to an array of size N, where N is the size of the passed pointer to the array, which is known at compile time:
template<std::size_t N>
void editProduct(Product* (&listP)[N])
{
// Now the listP can be edited, here without copying
}
or it must accept a pointer to an object, so that it can refer the array
void editProduct(Product** listP)
{
// find the array size for iterating through the elements
}
In above both cases, you will call the function as
listM[index]->editProduct(listP);
That been said, your code has a few issues.
First, the array sizes numProduct and numManager must be compiled time constants, so that you don't end up creating a non-standard variable length array.
Memory leak at the end of main as you have not deleted what you have newed.
Also be aware Why is "using namespace std;" considered bad practice?
You could have simply used std::array, or std::vector depending on where the object should be allocated in memory. By which, you would have avoided all these issues of memory leak as well as pointer syntaxes.
For example, using std::vector, you could do simply
#include <vector>
// in Manager class
void editProduct(std::vector<Product>& listP)
{
// listP.size() for size of the array.
// pass by reference and edit the listP!
}
in main()
// 5 Product objects, and initialize to default value
std::vector<Product> listP(5);
std::vector<Manager> listM{ {"1","alex"}, {"2", "Felix"} };
// ... other codes
for (const Manager& mgr : listM)
{
if (mgr.getId() == ID && mgr.getPass() == PASS)
{
// ... code
}
}
if (exist == true) {
listM[index]->editProduct(listP);
}
You cannot have arrays as parameters in C++, you can only have pointers. Since your array is an array of pointers you can use a double pointer to access the array.
void editProduct(Product** listP){
and
listM[index]->editProduct(listP);
Of course none of these arrays of pointers are necessary. You could simplify your code a lot if you just used regular arrays.
Product listP[numProduct];
Manager listM[numManager] = { Manager("1","alex"), Manager("2", "Felix")};
...
for(int i = 0; i < numManager; i++ ){
if(listM[i].getId() == ID && listM[i].getPass() == PASS) {
exist = true;
index = i;
}
}
if(exist == true){
listM[index].editProduct(listP);
}

Can't modify a string in C++ array

Trying to learn datastructures, I made this class for a stack. It works just fine with integers but it throws a mysterious error with strings.
The class List is the API for my stack. Its meant to resize automatically when it reaches the limit. The whole code is just for the sake of learning but the error I get doesn't make any sense and it happens somewhere in some assembly code.
#include <iostream>
#include<string>
using namespace std;
class List {
private:
int N = 0;
string* list = new string[1];
void resize(int sz) {
max = sz;
string* oldlist = list;
string* list = new string[max];
for (int i = 0; i < N; i++) {
list[i] = oldlist[i];
}
}
int max = 1;
public:
void push(string str) {
if (N == max) {
resize(2 * N);
}
cout << max << endl;
list[N] = str;
N++;
}
void pop() {
cout << list[--N] << endl;
}
};
int main()
{
string in;
List list;
while (true) {
cin >> in;
if (in == "-") {
list.pop();
}
else {
list.push(in);
}
}
}
string* list = new string[max]; in the resize method defines a new variable named list that "shadows", replaces, the member variable list. The member list goes unchanged and the local variable list goes out of scope at the end of the function, losing all of the work.
To fix: Change
string* list = new string[max];
to
list = new string[max];
so that the function will use the member variable.
Don't forget to delete[] oldlist; when you're done with it to free up the storage it points at.

Vector Isn't Creating Multiple Class Objects

I have a vector that stores multiple class objects for later access. This way my program can create new objects during runtime. This is done like so:
vector<Person> peopleVector;
peopleVector.push_back(Person(name, age));
for (int i = 0; i < peopleVector.size(); i++) {
cout << peopleVector[i].name << endl;
}
This function should print out each objects "name" every time the code runs (it's a function that runs multiple times). However, when I run this, somehow the vector does not increase in size. If you add cout << peopleVector.size(); to that code, you will find that each time it runs, it gets one (obviously assuming you also have the class code which I have below).
I'm curious why I can't create multiple objects in the class.
Class.h
#pragma once
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
class Person {
public:
Person(string personName, int personAge);
string name;
int age;
};
Person::Person(string personName, int personAge) {
name = personName;
age = personAge;
}
Main.cpp
#include "Class.h"
#include <random>
int main() {
// Necessary for random numbers
srand(time(0));
string name = names[rand() % 82]; // Array with a lot of names
int age = 4 + (rand() % 95);
}
// Create a new person
void newPerson(string name, int age) {
vector<Person> peopleVector;
peopleVector.push_back(Person(name, age));
for (int i = 0; i < peopleVector.size(); i++) {
cout << peopleVector[i].name << endl;
}
}
Just FYI those #includes might be a little bit off because I took that code out of a large section that had like 15 includes.
You are creating an empty vector each time you call your newPerson() function, and then you add a single person to it.
You then display the contents of that vector. What else can it contain, other than the single person that you added?
Problem
Every time a function runs, all local variables inside the function are re-created in their default state. That means that every time you call newPerson, it just recreates peopleVector.
Solution
There are two solutions:
Have newPerson take a reference to a vector, and add it on to that
make peopleVector static, so that it isn't re-initialized every time
First solution:
// Create a new person; add it to peopleVector
// The function takes a reference to the vector you want to add it to
void newPerson(string name, int age, vector<Person>& peopleVector) {
peopleVector.push_back(Person(name, age));
for (int i = 0; i < peopleVector.size(); i++) {
cout << peopleVector[i].name << endl;
}
}
Second solution: mark peopleVector as static
// create a new person; add it to peopleVector
void newPerson(string name, int age) {
// Marking peopleVector as static prevents it from being re-initialized
static vector<Person> peopleVector;
peopleVector.push_back(Person(name, age));
for (int i = 0; i < peopleVector.size(); i++) {
cout << peopleVector[i].name << endl;
}
}

C++, Weird behavior of cout when trying to print integers

Im trying to write a class that stores an id and a value in an container class.
Im using an nested class as my data structure.
When im compiling the code sometimes it prints perfectly, sometimes it prints nothing and sometimes it prints half of the data then stops.
When i debug the code the same weird behavior occours, when it fails during debug it throws an error "Map.exe has triggered a breakpoint.", the Error occours in the print method when im using cout.
cmap.h
#pragma once
class CMap
{
public:
CMap();
~CMap();
CMap& Add(int id, int value);
void print() const;
private:
class container
{
public:
~container();
int container_id = 0;
int container_value = 0;
};
container* p_komp_;
int dim_ = -1;
void resize();
};
cmap.cpp
#include "cmap.h"
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
CMap::CMap()
{
p_komp_ = new container[0];
}
CMap::~CMap()
{
p_komp_ = nullptr;
cout << "destroy cmap";
}
CMap& CMap::Add(int id, int value)
{
resize();
p_komp_[dim_].container_id = id;
p_komp_[dim_].container_value = value;
return *this;
}
void CMap::resize()
{
container* temp_array = new container[++dim_];
if (dim_ == 0)
{
temp_array[0].container_id = p_komp_[0].container_id;
temp_array[0].container_value = p_komp_[0].container_value;
}
for (unsigned i = 0; i < dim_; i++)
{
temp_array[i].container_id = p_komp_[i].container_id;
temp_array[i].container_value = p_komp_[i].container_value;
}
p_komp_ = temp_array;
}
void CMap::print() const
{
for (unsigned i = 0; i <= dim_; i++)
{
cout << p_komp_[i].container_id;
cout << p_komp_[i].container_value;
}
}
CMap::container::~container()
{
cout << "destruct container";
}
Map.cpp
#include "cmap.h"
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
void main(void)
{
CMap m2;
m2.Add(1, 7);
m2.Add(3, 5);
m2.print();
}
These two things are a possible reason for your problem:
int dim_ = -1;
and
container* temp_array = new container[++dim_];
When you allocate, you increase dim_ from -1 to 0. That is you create a zero-sized "array", where every indexing into it will be out of bounds and lead to undefined behavior.
You also have memory leaks since you never delete[] what you new[]. I didn't look for more problems, but there probably a more.
And an "array" (created at compile-time or through new[]) will have indexes from 0 to size - 1 (inclusive). You seem to think that the "size" you provide is the top index. It's not, it's the number of elements.
It seems to me that you might need to take a few steps back, get a couple of good books to read, and almost start over.

Creating a personal string vector class

I am not allowed to make use of the vector class so I need to make my own. I made a int vector class and it works fine, but when trying to make it for strings it compiles but gives me an error because of the pointers. Any hint where I am making the mistake? All I did was change every int element for string, but aparently that does not work. Please help I am very confused.
public:
StringRow(){
elements = new string;
size = 0;
}
~StringRow(){...}
void push_back(string value){...}
};
You defined pointer to variable, not array of variables.
elements = new string;
Replace it with
elements = new string[size];
You can optimize algorithm with defining initial size. Create bigger array only if it's necessary.
There are several problems:
in the constructor you don't need to allocate anything. You don't even need a constructor here, you can initialize the members directly as you declare them.
if you allocate with string* tmpElementsArray = new string[size + 1]; you need to deallocate with delete [] tmpElementsArray;
Corrected working version:
#include <string>
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
class StringRow {
private:
string* elements = nullptr;
int size = 0;
public:
// constructor not needed
// StringRow() {
// elements = nullptr;
// size = 0;
// }
~StringRow() {
delete []elements;
}
void push_back(string value) {
string* tmpElementsArray = new string[size + 1];
for (int i = 0; i<size; i++) {
tmpElementsArray[i] = elements[i];
}
delete [] elements;
elements = tmpElementsArray;
elements[size] = value;
size++;
}
int length() {
return size;
}
string at(int index) {
if (index<size) {
return elements[index];
}
}
};
int main()
{
StringRow s;
string str1 = "hello";
string str2 = "hello2";
s.push_back(str1);
s.push_back(str2);
cout << s.at(0) << endl ;
cout << s.at(1) << endl;
}
Doing a delete []elements if elements is nullptr is OK.
NB: This is not the most efficient way.